House Democrats released their budget yesterday afternoon and it is chock full of two of the Left’s favorite things – empty promises and taxes. Their $52.8 billion budget includes $1.4 billion in new revenue (taxes), with one of them being their favorite tax – an income tax. They attempt to put a nice spin on the income tax by calling is an, “Extraordinary Profits Tax.” They can call it whatever they like, but at the end of the day it’s still an income tax. (The Olympian)

Inslee’s delusional aspiration for the White House is set to cost taxpayers $4 million more in added security costs. Because of his cross-country travels, the Washington State Patrol plans to double the size of the governor’s traveling security detail. Last year the sergeant overseeing the Executive Protection Unit said Inslee’s campaigning was stretching them pretty thin. “We are literally sending troops all over the nation with sometimes only a couple days notice,” wrote Sgt. Leonard Crichton. “I am pretty sure we cannot continue at this level without something breaking.” Rep. Drew Stokesbary (R-Auburn) on Twitter noted – “For context, the State Patrol has a huge backlog of untested sexual assault kits. $4 million would allow them to test about 2,500 kits.” (Seattle Times)

After video of a Seattle constituent being dismissed and ignored by the council went viral, Mayor Jenny Durkan decided it would look good if she reached out to him. “She expressed her regret on how things were handled, and she said she would get her transportation people to look into our underlying problem…” said the Richard Schwartz, the Seattle resident in the video. Since the video, Schwartz has only heard from one councilmember expressing some regret for the entire situation. (MyNorthwest)

The city of Yakima’s aquifer storage and recover program has been permitted, with plans of two new wells that will help during droughts. The project is part of the Yakima Basin integrated water management plan. A spokeswoman for the state’s Department of Ecology-Central Region, said that Yakima’s pilot project was “an important and creative option to help improve overall water supplies in the Yakima Basin.” (Yakima Herald)

“I feel better because the first couple weeks was just a whirlwind and I was just trying to keep my feet on the ground, trying to figure out what the process was,” said Alex Ybarra (R-Quincy). Ybarra was appointed to the State House in January to fill a vacancy in the 13^th District, and with about half the session remaining he feels like he’s beginning to hit his stride. “I think I can make a difference for our district,” said Ybarra about his decision to run for re-election in November. (Columbia Basin Herald)

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